Thursday, June 04, 2009

Clay Aiken's Singles Sales Still #1


VEGAS PERFORMANCE -- Clay Aiken was among the featured performers at the May 9 David Foster & Friends Concert in Las Vegas. Graphic by Amazing_CA.

Grandson Enjoys New Adventures

AI2 Sets Sales, Viewer Records

Whether comparing debut week singles sales or finale show viewers for the eight editions of American Idol, Clay Aiken and Ruben Studdard of Season 2 still hold the crown.

Singles tabulations have been published for the winners and runner-ups at several sites, two being mjsbigidolblog: Kris and Adam: First Week Sales Comparison Chart and IDOL LIVE: Kris' and Adams' first week sales in comparison.

Ruben's "Flying Without Wings / Superstar" single tops the winners' column with 286,000 singles sold the first week; and Clay's "This Is the Night" / "Bridge Over Troubled Water" leads everyone -- winners and runners up -- with a 393,000-unit debut.

In a message board post, Fountaindawg combined both groups -- winners and runners up -- to complete the chart below. The first number on the right is the highest ranking the single achieved, and the second marks its Top 100 opening slot. There was no single by Season 1 runner-up Justin Guarini.

Idol First Week Singles Sales Comparisons
Winners/Runners-Up Combined

1) Clay Aiken, "This Is The Night / Bridge over Troubled Water" - 393,000 - #1 (#1)
2) Ruben Studdard, "Flying Without Wings / Superstar" - 286,000 - #2 (#2)
3) David Cook, "The Time of My Life" - 236,024 - #3 (#3)
4) Kelly Clarkson, "A Moment Like This / Before Your Love" - 236,000 - #1 (#52)
5) Taylor Hicks, "Do I Make You Proud / Takin' It to the Streets" - 190,147 - #1 (#1)
6) Fantasia, "I Believe / Chain of Fools / Summertime" - 142,141 - #1 (#1)
7) Kris Allen, "No Boundaries" - 134,458 - #11 (#11)
8) Carrie Underwood, "Inside Your Heaven / Independence Day" - 131,504 - #1 (#1)
9) Adam Lambert, "Mad World" - 114,763 - #19 (#19)
10) Bo Bice, "Inside Your Heaven / Vehicle" - 108,158 - #2 (#2)
11) Jordin Sparks, "This Is My Now" -74,303 - #15 (#15)
12) David Archuleta, "Imagine" - 71,178 - #36 (#36)
13) Blake Lewis, "You Give Love a Bad Name" - 70,133 - #18 (#18)
14) Diana DeGarmo, "Dreams / Don't Cry Out Loud / I Believe" - 65,000 - #14 (#14)
15) Katharine McPhee, "Somewhere Over the Rainbow / My Destiny" - 47,394 - #12 (#12)

Season 2 Finale Most Viewed

The two-hour finale rankings are also led by the Season 2 showdown of Clay and Ruben. This spring's Season 8 final show tied with the Fantasia Barrino-Diana DeGarma episode of Season 3. According to Ace Show Biz, the viewing numbers for each season finale stack up like this:

(1) Season 2 (Studdard-Aiken): 38 million
(2) Season 5 (Hicks-McPhee): 36.4 million
(3) Season 7 (Cook-Archuleta): 31.7 million
(4) Season 6 (Sparks-Lewis): 30.7 million
(5) Season 4 (Underwood-Bice): 30.3 million
(6) Season 8 (Allen-Lambert): 28.84 million (tie)
(6) Season 3 (Barrino-DeGarmo): 28.84 million (tie)
(7) Season 1 (Clarkson-Guarrini): 22.8 million
Despite the numbers, ask any Clay Aiken fan and it's still all about pipes, heart, and personality. We came for the voice and stayed for the man. Idol found, game over!

PHOTO INTERLUDE: Graphics by Amazing_CA, 1 and 3, and Fountaindawg, 2, are featured in this clickable collection.





'Summer of Kai' Recalled

Last June my grandson Kai and I were just getting to know each other, routinely watching kiddie programs like Mickey Mouse on TV and penning the Carolina blog together.
During his month-long visit, Kai learned to crawl, pull himself up to a standing position, and was beginning to talk before flying home with his mother.

Some of Kai's favorite times were spent playing with twin cousins five years his elder. He loved swinging, going to the their t-ball games, and splashing in the pool while the they took swimming lessons. The lush, green grass and tall trees of this state fascinated him.

On 5/25/08, Kai "blogged" about meeting the Carolina clan in Kai Joins Clay Aiken Fan Club, sharing some of his daily rituals -- pulling out a few books from the bottom shelf of a music cabinet as he crawled by every morning; beating out a rhythm on the washing machine and dryer before entering the den; and watching a full lineup of kiddie shows with his Grandma Caro. Not a day went by that we didn't check to see if the "Monkey Mail" had come.

The grand piano was another favorite in his daily routine. At all times, Kai schemed for access to the keys and buttons on the laptop, telephone, and remote control. Included below are clickable photos by his mother with graphics by Sally, 1, and Amazing_CA, 5.









With the 5/13 birth of his baby sister, Kai now spends his days hanging with his grandfather, whom he calls Poppy. He is walking, talking, experimenting and interacting with everything and everyone in sight.

Some of his favorite haunts include the park, the hardware store where he enjoys spinning wheels incessantly, his great-grandmother's home where he makes a beeline for the piano.

While he still has a propensity for buttons, snaps, openings and closures of all varieties, Kai also likes to "help" his mother in the kitchen. She created a cabinet shelf for him to routinely rearrange and eventually turned over the dishwasher to him, too.








Kai Bypasses Climbing Obstacles

Our grandson loves to climb, and he is constantly seeking paths to the pinnacle of tables, cabinets, sinks, you name it. After the adults leaned the dining room chairs in a manner meant to discourage his "hobby," Kai determined a solution, got down on his hands and knees, and pushed an uprighted chair to the desired location.

Very early one May morning the target was the dividing shelf between the kitchen and dining room. Poppy was still asleep, but Kai knew the phone locator button would blast him wide awake. It did, and another adventurous day was soon underway.

Since then, the dining room chairs are flipped upside down when not in use. I wonder how long it will take this clever little guy to overcome this latest hurdle!

As far as Kai is concerned, the jury is still out on baby sister Lia. A future reading assignment for him will be the above double-clickable "Why God Made Little Girls" graphic created by Ashes.

Out west, the computer that supplies Carolina relatives pictures of Lia and Kai is supposed to be home from the shop and back in action this weekend.

Below is a clickable of the opening graphic by Amazing_CA:

Have a wonderful week, Clay Nation!

Caro

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23 comments:

SueReu said...

Thanks Caro!! Go Clay Aiken & Rubben Studdard! They set the bar mighty high!!! Interesting that the season 2 and season 5 finales are the top rated, what did they have in common? think think think.....

Beautiful blends - so many talented people!

Kai is a doll, I love reading about his adventures - he's very smart and quite the cutie pie!!

katy said...

Glad to see Clay Aiken & Ruben Studdards singles are still at the top of the list!!
Wonderful blog!!

Ashes said...

Love this entry Caro! Thank you.

Clay Aiken & Ruben Studdard and the rest of the group of season 2 provided the best talent and entertainment, the stats keep proving that.

Always get a smile reading about Kai's adventures. It's going to be interesting to see how baby sister does her thing :)

Thanks for all you do.

chel4clay said...

Thanks Caro. I had no idea Clay Aiken and Ruben were the top selling debut idols. They certainly have set the bar for others to try and cross.

Kai is adorable, I know your proud.

Beanblossom said...

There will never be another year like the one Clay Aiken and Ruben Studdard were on. It really was one for the record books.

Kia is such a sweetie!!

musicfan said...

Isn't it amazing that Clay and Ruben are still at the top. I don't think anyone will ever break that number.

Clay Aiken is an amazing man and I am proud to be one of his fans.

Kai is so cute!!

Thank you for another great blog.

LovesClaysVoice said...

Thanks for the blog Caro! It's great to see Clay and Ruben still at the top! Best season ever!

Truth Rules said...

No matter how hard they try, they can't beat Clay and Ruben.

Anonymous said...

The season of Clay Aiken and Ruben Studdard WAS the best season!! It's a shame that so many people heard about the show because of that season, but came too late to the party when others were beginning to leave.

jbc4clay said...

There will never be another Clay Aiken and Ruben Studdard. Great blog!
Sweet baby!

Anonymous said...

Yes, Clay Aiken and Ruben Studdard! Best season of AI ever!!

Anonymous said...

Clay Aiken--how wonderful we are to have him in our lives. Not only for his outstanding singing, but for all the good he is doing to support and help those who need it most by raising MILLIONS of dollars for charitable causes.

We are so looking forward to Clay Aiken's upcoming announcement of the new name for his Bubel-Aiken Foundation!

Hooray for season 2..it brought us Clay Aiken and Ruben..just the best!

Anonymous said...

Great blog about wonderful fellas--Clay Aiken, and favourite grandson!

Anonymous said...

Very good blog, and such a cutie you have for a g.son!! Cute!!!Clay will always be number one to so many of Us!! Nice to read he is still up in sales. I hope we hear him sing soon! Thanks! for your blog, enjoyed it! Donna in Wi.

ImGranny said...

Thanks for the blog. It's great to see Clay Aiken and Ruben Studdard's singles still at the top!

Your grandson is adorable!!!!!!!!!

Anonymous said...

American Idol jumped the shark after Season 2. There won't be another season of that show that will top Season 2, mainly because of the Clay Aiken versus Ruben Studdard show-down.

Anonymous said...

Pretty graphics, such talent in Clay Aiken land!

CLM said...

Wonderful blog Caro. Mwah!!! Love the numbers for Clay Aiken and his successes. I don't believe we will be seeing any AI finale numbers like season 2 again. We also won't ever see sales numbers like Clay's either. Yippee!!!


Kai is such a cutie. Thanks for sharing him with us.

Anonymous said...

Clay Aiken!! He's still number one and we're still havin' fun!!

I LOVE this guy.

Unknown said...

Clay's amazing numbers remain undefeated, deny all you want AI; Clay is still the best.

Grandma Caro, I can hear how much you miss Kai, I do too. :(

Hopefully, you will see him and little sister soon.

barb 55 said...

Caro, what a year AI2 was! I will never forget that year. I remember I couldn't wait for Tuesday and Wednesday to roll around so I could see and hear Clay perform. I made sure my schedule was clear those nights.

I love the extra pics in this entry of Kai enjoying his adventures. I bet he has the best time. He's a cutie, as well as his little sister, Lia.

I"m so happy for you that you will be getting your computer back. I bet you can't wait!

Thanks so much for sharing another amazing blog with us!

Love and hugs,

Barbara

T said...

No one can beat Clay and Ruben in Season 2 - still my favorite. I've watched AI8 from the start until the finale but did not feel the same excitement like I did with Season 2.

Great blog Caro and so happy to know that Clay's single sales is still #1.

Your recollection of Kai's last June summer is one my most favorite highlights in your blog. Love reading about him. It makes me smile looking at his photos and the graphics. Beautiful graphic of Lia from J.

Thanks so much for another excellent blog and also, very honored to see that you've included the blends. All of the other graphics are amazing!

Cheers and more power Caro!

Anonymous said...

One comment asked what did season 2 and season 5 finale's have in common? Clay appeared on both! There was alot of media hype about his appearance - will he or won't he be on the finale of season 5 - that surely brought back viewers that weren't tuning in - myself included!! Clay rocks.